Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited, announced the launch of Immune-mediated Inflammatory Diseases Consortium for Drug Development (consortium) to research and discover drugs for intractable immune-mediated inflammatory diseases in collaboration with Keio University, based in Minato-ku, Tokyo (Akira Haseyama/President), Kochi University, based in Nankoku-shi, Kochi (Katsutoshi Sakurai/President), the National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition, based in Ibaraki-shi, Osaka (Yoshihiro Yoneda/Director General), Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., based in Chuo-ku, Osaka (Gyo Sagara/President, Representative Director and CEO), and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation, based in Chuo-ku, Osaka (Masayuki Mitsuka/President & Representative Director).

With the aim of curing intractable immune-mediated inflammatory diseases, reverse translational research for drug discovery research is being conducted worldwide using data on clinical samples analysed with the latest technologies. However, as the number of clinical samples from the patients with intractable immune-mediated inflammatory diseases are limited, and the increasing costs of drug discovery are burdensome, we have newly established an organisation to efficiently discover drugs through a collaboration among multiple academia and industry members.

In the consortium, the Department of Rheumatology and Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Keio University Hospital, and the Center for Intractable Immune Disease, Kochi Medical School, Kochi University will collect samples and detailed clinical information before and after treatment as an inception cohort from the patients with multiple intractable immune-mediated inflammatory diseases. These samples from the patients will be examined at the National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition through detailed and comprehensive analysis, including transcriptome analysis. A high-quality database, consisting of various types of data accumulated in the consortium, will be shared among the participating academia members and pharmaceutical companies. While each pharmaceutical company conducts original drug discovery research for intractable immune-mediated inflammatory diseases utilizing this database, each academia member will utilize the study outcomes for further basic research and applied research. The consortium will thus function based on this unprecedented concept of industry-academia collaboration.

Daiichi Sankyo defines the intractable and rare diseases that are difficult to be cured with current standards of care (SOC) as “New Horizon Areas,” and it aims to offer a new treatment option for patients by continuously creating advanced pharmaceuticals that will transform SOC.

Reverse translational research: A new approach of research where findings and information obtained through clinical practice and studies are provided for basic research. In the consortium, blood and tissue samples are collected from patients before and after standards of care (SOC) for detailed and comprehensive analysis, including transcriptome analysis, to utilize the results in order to discover new drugs and expand the indications of existing drugs.